Release Date: Tuesday, June 24th, 2014
Screen Format: Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English 5.1 DD
Subtitles: English/Spanish/French
Total Run Time: 656 minutes
Show Rating: 3.0 out of 4 Stars
Special Features Rating: 3.0 out of 4 Stars
Overall DVD Rating: 3.0 out of 4 Stars
Synopsis: Gripping crime thriller set on the U.S.-Mexico border that revolves around the investigation of a murder victim left on the bridge connecting El Paso and Juarez. Detective Sonya Cross, played by Diane Kruger (Inglorious Basterds, National Treasure) has to work with her Mexican counterpart, Marco Ruiz, played by Demian Bichir (Weeds), to catch a serial killer that is terrorizing both sides of the border. Their investigation will uncover lots of shocking secrets and twists with a relentless danger that neither of them could have imagined.
Show Review: The Bridge Season 1 premiered in July 2013 and hooked me from the start with the setting and mystery. While it is a cop show, it is more than a cop show. It’s about the area, the people and the criminals that try to take advantage. There is a season long mystery arc that begins in the first episode, but they made a very interesting choice to solve that for the audience before the season finale. The last couple episodes basically spend time setting up what types of stories and investigations we will get in season two.
Kruger’s Det. Cross is another interesting choice, as the character has Aspergers. But, there is no exposition to explain this to the audience. You get to learn about her as Bichir’s Det. Ruiz gets to know her. This was a bold choice, as Cross is a hard character to like until you get to know her. Yet, being one of your leads, this can be tough for an audience to deal with. But, as with many decisions they made when creating the series, this ultimately works.
If you’re looking for a good mystery with some twists and turns and some great acting performances, then look no further than The Bridge.
Special Features Review: The main reason to get a show on DVD/Blu-ray these days over the digital download/streaming options that may be available are the special features. @FOXHomeEnt sent me a copy of the DVD for review, so I could check them out.
- “Building The Bridge” – Executive producers and co-creators Edward Reid and Meredith Stiehm along with various stars of the series give you a good behind the scenes look at creating the series. If you haven’t watched the series, you might want to wait until after to watch this due to minor spoilers. Runs about 20 minutes.
- “Ciudad Juarez: The Other Side of The Bridge with Damien Cave” – Cave, a reporter for the New York Times and consultant for the series, takes you across the border and gives you a historical look at Juarez, Mexico. Runs about 10 minutes.
- Deleted Scenes – A couple of interesting scenes, but the main one worth checking out is the second one that plays from the “Pilot” episode. It’s not so much a deleted seen as it is a scene that was replaced by the same scene reshot in a new locale for the final version of the episode. They talk about the reasons why they made the changes in the “Pilot” commentary.
- Audio Commentary on the “Pilot” episode – Bichir, Kruger, Reid and Stiehm give some interesting information about the casting, as each actor appears on screen for the first time, where scenes were shot, and more. Definitely worth listening too, but only after you’ve watched the series as a whole, as there are some major spoilers mentioned for things to come.
The main special feature that is missing here is a gag reel/outtakes, which is something I believe every DVD release should include no matter whether the show is a comedy or drama.
Other Available Formats: Besides DVD
Season 2 premieres Wednesday, July 9th on FX.
